Chapter One: Boyhood

  An extraordinary person has an extraordinary affair.

  Xia Xiaosan is a veteran otaku, without a computer he would stay at home reading Jin Yong's novels, and with a computer he would stay at home playing games. Perhaps it was his natural disposition, but this kid never got nearsighted. When he was young, after finishing Jin Yong's novels, he loved to learn from the martial arts masters in the books and practice some wild boxing moves, so his body is still quite robust.

  Even otakus have times when they go out to see the sun, at that time, Xia Xiao San thought it would be interesting to be a backpacker, so he packed his bags, checked the map and went mountain climbing.

  The mountain is a good place. The legendary life of countless predecessors in the martial arts world all started from the mountains. There was once a predecessor named Zhang Wuji, who fell off a cliff, picked up a book on the Nine Yang Divine Skill, and then became invincible under heaven, with numerous beauties. Another predecessor, Yang Guo, also stumbled upon a cave in the mountains and practiced to become a peerless martial artist. And another predecessor...

  Xia Xiaosan had such a fantasy, but as the years went by, he realized that having such dreams was no better than praying for top-notch equipment to burst out, so he gave up. On this day, when he climbed halfway up the mountain and panted with his knees propped up, all he could think about was the things on the mountaintop, and he didn't even think of the experiences of those high-ranking seniors at all.

  Later, due to the long-neglected guardrail on the mountain path, Xia Xiaosan was suddenly thrown out of the mountain path along with the iron pipe and chain in his hand while he was pulling himself up. As he fell, his thoughts were exceptionally clear.

  "Is this how Zhang Wuji and others fell back then?"

  That was Xia Xiao San's last thought in this world.

  As for that pile of rotten meat, whether it became fertilizer or someone's dinner, no one knows.

  Xia Xiaosan's death caused some shockwaves in the world, directly leading to a significant obstacle for a certain large guild's RAID that month. The disappearance of the main tank was really infuriating, and later Xia Xiaosan was kicked out of the guild.

  It's strange to say, but what has this kid been relying on to survive until now?

  It doesn't matter anymore.

  Xia Xiaosan is dead.

  The blacksmith of Tabriz is overjoyed today, his wife has given birth to a big fat boy, whose cries shake the heavens, definitely a robust child. Even if he wasn't robust it wouldn't matter, after all he's his own son and still an only child - so far.

  The blacksmith's name was Smith, and he ran a small smithy in the city of Tabriz. He couldn't make any world-famous swords or high-end armor. If you didn't have much money, he could still make an iron sword that would last for a while. If you had some money, he'd carefully craft a fine steel longsword for you. And if you were extremely wealthy, Smith would be more than happy to help - by pointing out the road leading to the residence of the master craftsman.

  In the field of weapons, he can also forge a fine steel long sword.

  However, the quality of the long sword is not bad, and the surviving adventurers are all praise, with some repeat customers. Although the number of returns is not many, after all, good steel swords are not consumables, and the brave warriors who use the long sword as a consumable either die quickly or become legends.

  Tabriz has not had a legend in nearly fifty years.

  But that has nothing to do with this blacksmith. Today, with the addition of a new family member, Smith is in high spirits, and when he's in high spirits, his hands are not light. After ruining two knives, Smith finally decided to close up shop.

  Haven't even given that little brat a name yet.

  The child's father was delighted, and the child was in a different mood.

  When the little doll was just born, her vision and hearing were still in a semi-closed state. However, the human soul is very mysterious, and Xia Xiao San's thinking was quite active at this time amidst the chaos.

  "Am I dead? Is this what the world is like after death?"

  Xia Xiaosan felt some sympathy for those who had committed suicide to escape their troubles. He still had the mood to sympathize with others.

  "If this is death, then isn't death just like eternal life in chaos? Eternal life, eternal life, it should be very painful, but that's an eternal pain, at the beginning of eternity, just ordinary time. My thinking is so clear, maybe I can think about some ultimate questions about human life, the world and the entire universe in this eternally living world, such as where I came from, where I'm going. Nonsense, I've already arrived here. Eh? Could it be that there will still be reincarnation?"

  Excitedly daydreaming, Xia Xiaosan didn't feel any fear at all. This otaku is really not simple.

  This feeling lasted for a while. Xia Xiao San couldn't see the sun and didn't have a watch, so he didn't know how long it was. Anyway, when he opened his eyes, he knew that he hadn't died after all.

  And I'm quite hungry too.

  Some instincts are beyond the control of the soul, and as he sucked on his mother's milk, Xia Xiaosan was slightly surprised.

  "Drinking milk... Although I've had it before, drinking it with a clear mind is really... somewhat embarrassing... Is this woman my mother? She looks like a European. This clothing, is it linen? The room is dark and gloomy, without glass windows. The strangest thing is, I'm an infant! Have I been reborn? Where's Meng Po's soup? Hell? Heaven? Where am I? Ah, good, I'm full, let me sleep for a while before thinking about it."

  In the following days, Xia Xiao San learned some things. Looking at his father's attire, he should be a blacksmith. The food at home was very simple, with very hard bread and meat soup, no chopsticks, no knives or forks, but fortunately there were bowls to soak the bread in the meat soup to eat. The bowl was black, and it couldn't be seen what material it was made of, but judging from the sound, it definitely wasn't metal, roughly made of wood. There was a bed at home, with linen-like sheets and quilts. When he was taken out to play, he could see that the sky was very clean, and the buildings were not high.

  "It must be a crossover." Xia Xiao San nodded in his heart, "Judging from the situation, it should be a dark medieval Europe, a continent of ignorance, lords, knights, religion, and monks. With my intelligence, this era belongs to me!"

  And so a year passed in drinking milk, sleeping and wailing to express needs.

  It's time to learn how to speak.

  "This strange syllable, is it Dad or Mom? So confusing! Why are they just holding me and swaying while muttering?"

  But Xiaosan still spoke up: "Ah, ah, mom."

  The blacksmith was overjoyed, especially when he later heard his son call him "Dad".

  Time flies, and the legendary Tabriz City still hasn't appeared, while adventurers visiting Smith's blacksmith shop have changed one batch after another. Except for occasional armed fights on the streets and news of someone dying at the hands of something from time to time, everything is very peaceful. Xiaosan is two years old now.

  In this year, Xia Xiao San learned to say "dad", "mom" and some other words with unclear meanings. At the same time, he also knew his name in this era: Joanie - Xia Xiao San vowed to change his name in the future. That's all.

  People around here have been passing on a message: Smith's son is an idiot.

  Modern scientific research has shown that infants and toddlers have a gift for learning language, which is the golden period of language acquisition. The problem is that Smith's son, who looks very healthy and normal, is actually Xia Xiao San. His native language is Chinese, and his second language is half-baked English. Now being thrown into the hands of two people without teaching qualifications to learn a new language is simply tragic.

  Time has passed rapidly, Xiaosan - Joanie is already four years old. The good news is that he has learned the language here, although he can't write or read, but daily life is completely problem-free.

  The four-year-old doll has already learned to walk. Johnny has had more than 20 years of walking experience, so he walks even more smoothly. When he's free, he'll go play at the blacksmith's shop, and Smith is happy to see this little guy cultivate his passion for his job from a young age.

  Bad news came gradually.

  Adventurers aren't always in a hurry, on the contrary, they have plenty of free time - which means they're very poor. Anyway, when adventurers come here to order or directly purchase arms, they'll always find a place to sit down and chat with the boss or other customers, bragging about their exploits. One guy says he was once beaten up by twenty goblins, another claims to have taken down two ferocious bears, then someone else says he single-handedly took out an ogre, and everyone stops bragging. Ogres are incredibly tough, can regenerate, possess immense strength, and are extremely difficult to deal with - you can't even kill them without using fire or strong acid. But this isn't enough to shut up the braggarts.

  That guy's waist, hanging from it seems to be a giant demon's head.

  The braggarts were all frightened, holding their weapons and walking out of the blacksmith's shop with their heads down. Xiao Qiao Ni was also scared, wandering back to the house in a daze, at a loss for what to do.

  This is absolutely not medieval Europe.

  Where is here?

  "Goblins, ferocious bears, giants... Nights without winter? Dragons and dungeons? Faerun? The Forgotten Realms?" It seems familiar. But does this world really exist?

  Jony is not a fragile person, he's just shocked. It's like preparing for three months to chase a girl, only to find out when you walk up to her that she has a diamond ring on her ring finger. After the shock, it's fine.

  "If it's really come to this kind of world, are there magicians? Are there gods? Is it a true god? Multiple gods or one god? Is there aura? Is there cultivation? Is there...". Anyway, just a child, with plenty of time to think wildly.

  With doubts, time flew by again. Eight-year-old Johnny was already able to lend a hand to his old dad. From his old dad, he learned that this world had gods, many gods, but whether they were real or not, Johnny didn't plan on believing the words of a believer. This world had mages, all noble existences, anyway, it had nothing to do with the blacksmith shop. As for internal energy, who knew? Anyway, the warriors who came here to buy swords didn't have that kind of strength. As an ordinary person, what was most important was earning money to support his family and paying taxes to the lord.

  Tabriz City is not big, but the lord of the city is not a simple role. The team under Earl Dallars still has some strength, so the security in the city is okay, and taxes can be collected on time. At the same time, it's fortunate that Earl Dallars is not a greedy person, so everyone feels very happy.

  In a world with magic, whether it's low or high magic, it's not something that a kid with only modern knowledge can dominate at will. So Joanie has put on a positive attitude and is honestly working as a blacksmith for now.

  But it's not all downhill from here. What is a blacksmith? Do you think he's just a technical worker? Wrong! The protagonist of "Kingdom of Heaven", highly skilled in martial arts, handsome and elegant - he was originally a blacksmith who joined the army halfway! So Joanie still has some heroic dreams.

  "Dad, I want to read a book!" One day, Johnny shouted in his childish voice.

  "What?" Old Smith was hammering at his anvil, and between the clangs he had heard nothing.

  "I want to learn! I want to learn how to write!" Johnny shouted again.

  "Hahaha..." Old Smith burst out laughing, "Unbelievable, our Johnny wants to learn!"

  Something funny... Johnny doesn't get it.

  "Alright, alright, just think about it, can a family like ours afford to study?" Old Smith chuckled and waved his hand, then went back to work at the forge.

  Is tuition expensive?

  "Why?" Joni tugged on Old Man Smith's pant leg and swung back and forth.

  "What's the matter?" Smith stopped what he was doing, "Oh, ah. Don't be silly, I've heard that many knights don't even know how to write their own names. It seems like only in the church can you learn, but only nobles or those who are called by God can attend. Which one do you think you are? My good son?"

  Well...alright, let time fly by then.

  When Johnny was sixteen, his skills were already quite good, although not as good as Old Smith's. On his birthday, Old Smith carefully crafted a fine steel long sword for him. The old man knew what his son was thinking about, and although he wasn't very willing to let this only child take the path of an adventurer, his son's road had to be walked by himself after all. What could be done was to give him a defensive weapon, making his journey smoother.

  Over the years, relying on the ready-made swords in the store and the simple guidance of passing warriors, Johnny's martial arts have become... visible. Basic movements such as chopping, slashing, and thrusting are already familiar to the point of being unable to be more familiar, and years of running, jumping, and practicing have made his footwork quite agile. Adding the combat experience gained by adventurers in life-and-death situations, to put it bluntly, young Johnny is already much stronger than some third-rate small fries who come to buy weapons.

  Taking the long sword handed over by his father, Jony's eyes were slightly moist. For sixteen years, there was some emotion. However, he ultimately did not want to spend his whole life huddled beside the furnace, day and night hammering away at iron blocks, forging ordinary steel knives, getting married, having children, watching his son forge iron, and then dying peacefully...

  What a nightmare.

  "Dad, thanks to you and mom's care for many years, I know blacksmithing is our family's traditional craft, but... but I still want to be a warrior. Isn't that what men are supposed to do?"

  Smith nodded and immediately slapped a palm on Johnny's head: "Little rabbit, your dad didn't go to battle, you say I'm not a man?!"

  Qiao Ni covered his head and smiled wryly, the momentum from just now was gone.

  "But what you said also makes sense, young people always have something to pursue. This long sword represents my attitude. You've sold a lot of things over the years and made quite a bit of money, so here's some for you." He pulled out a heavy pouch from his clothes, "There are ten gold coins in here, we can't afford to give more than that since we still have to make ends meet at home. Be careful when you go out, buy yourself some decent armor and report back to the Warrior's Association. Save the rest of your money and don't spend it all at once. When doing quests, keep an eye on things, what's courage or honor? We're not nobles after all, remember that life is more important! Your mom and I hope you can bury us one day, so don't die before us!"

  After muttering to himself for a while, Old Smith suddenly gave Johnny a big hug, patted his back, and then let go abruptly, turning his head away: "Alright, take a rest now, just let us know before you leave."

  Jony felt a little sad, but the excitement and joy of adventure diluted that hint of parting sorrow: "Dad, take care of yourself and mom when I'm not around. I'll go rest now, goodnight."

  A night without words.

  On that long night, Johnny thought a lot. He suddenly found himself being silly, not traveling the world, why make it like life and death?

  But adventurers can't avoid going on long trips, and it's also a good opportunity to adapt in advance.

  Waking up, bidding farewell to parents, also bid farewell to a peaceful life, a different life has begun.